Gotham Nights
by lordtrayus
Summary: When the Joker and Scarecrow escape with Harley Quinn's help, Batman must put aside his lust for revenge to save Gotham City. How will he cope when one close to him turns against him, and brings more terror to Gotham? This is my sequel to Dark Knight! R
1. Stage 1: The Escape

**Disclaimer: I do not own Batman**

Gotham Nights

Gotham City. A dark hive of corruption, drugs, murder and vice. However, in recent months it had improved due to the arrival of the Batman. So far, he had foiled an attempt by Ra's al Ghul to destroy the city, defeated Scarecrow, captured Killer Croc and had defeated the Joker, and Two-Face. He, along with Jim Gordon, had cleaned up the city a considerable amount. The mob had been beaten back and was close to being destroyed. As former DA Harvey Dent, also known as Two-Face had said 'the night is darkest just before the dawn'. The dawn was finally coming.

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Arkham Asylum was dark and quiet. After the climatic battle three months before between Gotham Police and the Joker, it had been quiet as the grave. The Joker was in the highest cell imaginable, guarded day and night by SWAT commandos.

A few levels below, Jonathan Crane, also known as the Scarecrow was also incarcerated, though did not have such stringent security measures. Two armed policemen stood outside his cell as he sat there in the dark, contemplating.

Batman. The Batman. The defender of justice and the meek in hard, corrupt Gotham City. He had nearly had him with his fear toxin. But the bat had gotten away, and had killed his employer, Ra's al Ghul. As such, he was trapped inside the place he used to rule, and without his payment from his former employer. All because of the Batman.

"Hmm. One day Batman." he promised sinisterly.

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In the lobby, a short, blonde woman had arrived. She had brown eyes and perfectly done nails, and a kind face. She looked like someone's ideal mother. She smiled flatteringly at the two guards who were on the other side of the metal detector. One was large, burly and bulky, with a cropped haircut. The other was a thin, sallow man with a weedy look about him.

"Hello boys. Doctor Harleen Quinzel, psychiatrist. I'm here to analyse the Joker." she said sweetly.

The burly guard with the cropped hair snorted.

"Good luck with that headcase. Killed hundreds of people few months back. Step right through madam."

She did so, and as soon as she stepped through, the detector shrieked alarmingly.

"Excuse me lady." the other said and felt her.

He stopped short at her waist.

"What the…?"

She gave a wicked smile, pulled out a massive shotgun and fired a round into the man. As blood geysered from his chest, she calmly turned to the other and fired at him before he could raise the alarm.

She grinned as blood seeped across the floor.

"That went well." she said happily.

She then proceeded to the lift.

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Tim Kane, leader of the SWAT team guarding the Joker, reached for his walkie-talkie.

"Entrance, what's going on down there?" he asked.

A second before there had been two large bangs from it.

"Hudson, come in!" he yelled into it.

He frowned at the others.

"Something's wrong. I'll check it out." he said.

He holstered his rifle and headed for the lift. It suddenly chimed, and opened to reveal a woman with a shotgun.

"Hey." she said, and fired.

As Kane dropped to the floor, the other three opened fire. Sidestepping back into the lift, she winced as shots banged against the metal doors of the lift. She shot around the corner, and heard a scream, letting her know another one was down. She then rolled across the floor and pumped off two more shots, dropping the two other guards.

She casually strolled out of the lift into the bloodstained corridor.

"That was fun." she said gleefully.

She walked to the door they had been guarding and fired another bullet into the latch. The door slid open, to reveal the Joker.

He was still in his purple suit, still covered in his white make up with the red lips. His hair was still the sickly yellow-green colour it had always been.

"Hey hon." she purred.

He gave a wicked smile.

"Harley Quinn. Knew you'd come. We getting out?"

"Yeah. Come on honey, we're made."

She pulled another gun out of her bosom and handed it to her lover.

She had met him in Washington, where he had murdered two dozen policemen during an hour. When they had sent him to her for analysis, she'd fallen for him at once, and had busted him out. Since then, she'd had to go around a city behind him, dealing with the messes he had made in his exploits.

"I missed you." she purred and kissed him.

He hit her hard.

"Later. Now, we go!"

He led the way out and sniffed as he passed over the dead guards. He then entered the lift, and dragged her in. Pointing his gun up, he fired.

The lift plummeted to the ground.

"Jokey!" Harley Quinn cried in terror.

He gave an insane laugh and took her in his arms.

"Come on!"

He jumped out of the open lift as it crashed to the bottom of the shaft. They were in a corridor where two policemen were watching the door.

"Call the Commissioner! The Joker's out and he's got a hostage!"

This time Harley gave an insane laugh and blew the man's head off, before blowing the other's stomach apart.

"Why we here honey?" she purred, like an eager pet.

"I want someone to help us." he said cheerily.

He opened the door they were supposed to be guarding, and found Crane.

The bespectacled, handsome man looked up with his dazzling blue eyes.

"You're the Joker." he said breathlessly.

"Yep. And you're the Scarecrow, eh?"

"Correct."

"Then come on!" the Joker said with a manic grin.

Scarecrow quickly got up, and followed them out of the corridor.

"Where to?" Harley asked, as sirens pierced the air.

"Damn it girl, you forgot to disable the sensors!" the Joker yelled and punched Harley in the stomach.

Scarecrow grabbed his shoulder.

"Don't blame her. There's a silent one in the metal detector. We can get out. This way." he said in his soft voice.

He led them to a stairwell and they dashed down it. Coming out into the lobby, they saw six policemen storm in and observe their dead comrades.

"We can take them!" Harley said excitedly, and the Joker dashed out firing, her backing him up.

They all dropped to the floor as blood poured everywhere.

"Impressive." Scarecrow said.

"Cheers." Joker said with a smile, and they left the asylum and entered a parked police car.

"Drive." Joker said as he strapped in, cackling manically.

Harley gave a delighted grin, and they shot off.

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Bruce Wayne, billionaire playboy was having a night off from being Batman. Since he'd had to take the fall for Harvey Dent's descent into insanity and his crimes as Two-Face, he'd been doing very little of his crime fighting duties. He was also mourning the death of his great love, Rachel Dawes, who the Joker had had murdered with the help of corrupt cops. In fact, the only good thing to have come from the Joker's reign of terror was the fact that James Gordon was now Commissioner of the police. He was a good man, and the city had been further cleaned up with his presence.

"Master Bruce, I advise you to change to the news channel." Alfred said as he entered the room.

Bruce looked at his old friend, but his face betrayed nothing.

Bruce did so, and saw the headline:

**Joker and Scarecrow Escape!**

Bruce stared at the TV in shock. The Joker had challenged everything he had ever known and believed in, and had killed Rachel, and had managed to turn Harvey Dent into Two-Face.

Bruce ran a tired hand over his black hair.

"How Alfred? How?" he asked wearily.

Alfred put down a steaming cup of coffee beside him and sat down.

"They were busted out by an accomplice of the Joker's seemingly. I've taken the liberty of activating the Batpod master Bruce."

Bruce smiled as he got to his feet.

"What would I do without you?" he asked.

Alfred chuckled.

"Not much. You'd have fallen apart by now." he said.

Bruce shot him a mock glare and headed for the panel that would take him to the secret part of Wayne Towers, where Bruce Wayne was left behind and Batman was picked up.

"Here I go again." he said as he reached it.

"Master Bruce?"

He turned to his old friend and mentor.

"Yes Alfred?"

"Remember, Batman is still an enemy of the public. Also, I know the Joker brought about the death of Miss Dawes, but don't turn Batman into something he's not meant to be." he said wisely.

Bruce nodded solemnly.

"Thanks Alfred."

"And Master Bruce?"

"Yes?"

"Be careful."

"Thanks."

And with that, he was gone.

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Harley weaved the car in and out of traffic, the siren blaring as they passed through the city.

"So, what's the plan lover?" Harley asked.

"Get out of here!" the Joker crowed happily.

Scarecrow, who was sitting beside the Joker, and looked quite apprehensive of this arrangement, suddenly turned around in his seat.

"Batman!" he hissed.

The Joker gave a maniacal laugh, and grabbed both the guns.

"Keep driving!" he said as he stuck his head out of the sunroof.

Batman was coming up on the Batpod, and was arming his tyre busters.

"Hello Batsy!" the Joker cried, and fired.

Two cars blew apart on either side of the bike, showering Batman in shrapnel.

"Take that!" he said, cackling as he did so.

Batman narrowed his eyes. The Joker could blow up a lot of cars as he made his escape. Time to take the fight to him before more people were harmed. As the Joker fired at him, he accelerated towards him. The Joker was still laughing, but then suddenly stopped as Batman shot off the bike, expanded his cape and crashed down to the top of the car, denting it slightly.

"Hello Batman! Miss me?" the Joker asked evilly.

"Not really."

Batman punched the Joker in the face, making him drop the two shotguns in fright. The Joker then slammed his head into Batman's stomach, and Batman wheezed and doubled over. The Joker aimed another punch at Batman, but he was quicker, catching his adversary's hand and slamming it into the roof.

Below them, Harley was having trouble steering with the fight going on on top of the car. She veered around a corner.

"I need them off!" she cried.

Scarecrow picked up one of the guns.

"Keep driving!" he snarled, and turned in his seat.

The two enemies were having a major brawl on top of the car, when Batman suddenly forced the Joker down onto the bonnet of the car. He slammed down after his nemesis.

"For Rachel…" Batman said and raised his fist.

"Going to break your own rule Batsy?" the Joker cackled.

Inside, Harley shrieked as the two slammed down in front of her.

"I cant see!" she yelled.

Scarecrow fired the gun.

The bullet pierced the windowscreen and embedded itself in Batman's back. He was thrown off the car with the impact, where he crashed to the road, and was then hit by their escape car and flung like a rag doll to the gutter.

The Joker was laughing gleefully as he struggled back through the sunroof.

"Good shooting!" he said happily as he sat down.

Scarecrow nodded, pleased with himself.

"Police!" Harley screamed as three cars veered around a corner after them.

Scarecrow smiled, and raised his arm to pull a small canister off it.

"Watch this." he said.

He threw it out of the window, and as it hit the road, green gas flared up, causing a large screech of tyres and slamming noises as the cars veered off course, their drivers blind and seeing their worst fears. The three cars ploughed into the wall, and they were home free.

"We did it!" Harley shouted in delight, and the Joker joined her laughter. Even Scarecrow managed a smile.

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Batman winced as he climbed back onto the Batpod. The Joker and his confederates had gotten away, and he was bleeding rather heavily from the bullet wound where Scarecrow had blasted him. Two people had came up to him and poked him, but as soon as he'd stood up they'd run off. He gunned the engine, and the Batpod shot off through the dark streets of Gotham.

The Joker had escaped. Perhaps he should have killed him when he'd caught him, but that would have meant that the Joker had won. He had turned Harvey Dent into Two-Face and had killed Rachel, and had causes a reign of terror that still had people scared. He didn't need to transform Batman into a murderer too. However, Batman had taken the blame for the murders Two-Face had done, so the Joker had won again.

He was the greatest enemy Batman had faced. He was a total murderer, without conscience and he knew no bounds. And now he had escaped, undoubtedly with more murder and mayhem in mind. The problem was, Scarecrow had joined forces with him. With the climate of fear the Joker created, and the fear toxin belonging to Scarecrow, Gotham would be in very grave danger very soon. And there was also the one who had busted them out. Where did she fit in?

As he drove through a streetful of cars, earning many shocked and enraged glances as he did so, he felt his back. He felt the warm blood gushing from the wound. This was serious. Scarecrow may have damaged his kidneys. And then he would be in trouble.

He wheeled away from the Narrows, when he heard two police cars coming after him.

"Not good." he muttered.

The police wanted to catch him to make him pay for Two-Faces crimes, after he had taken the blame. Now they were after him.

He gunned the engines, and activated the smokescreen that Lucius had built in and shot off into the night.

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Two hours later, Harley Quinn pulled up at an abandoned factory near the Docks, after twisting and turning through many sidestreets and going around the freeway.

"Real fixer-upper you've got here." Scarecrow said sceptically.

Joker laughed, and they went inside, to find it full of guns and explosives.

"Just like you ordered lovvie." Harley said fondly.

Joker laughed manically.

"What's the plan?" Scarecrow asked as Harley vanished into another room.

Joker smacked his large lips.

"I'm not a really complicated person. I don't have plans, per se, I just…make em up as I go along."

Scarecrow snorted.

"You don't have a plan?" he asked incredulously.

"See my boy, I don't use plans. Plans are for folk like Batsy, you, Gordon, those sorts. I just like to introduce a little anarchy." he said gleefully.

"So do I."

Scarecrow turned to see Harley Quinn re-emerge from the room.

She was now dressed in a jester suit, black in the top left and bottom right, and red in the other two locations. She had a jester hat on, and her face was made to look white like the Joker's, with a black thief's mask surrounding her eyes.

"Ah, there's my girl!" Joker said, and kissed her again, to which she happily responded.

Scarecrow smiled. Studying these two would be fascinating.

"So, you just want to cause trouble?" he asked.

"Yep."

"May I suggest we have a plan?" he asked.

"Alright, to keep you happy only." Joker said.

Scarecrow sat down on a crate of weapons.

"Batman is our main problem. So, if you resume your reign of terror, it will mean that people will demand that he give himself up again, thus further stirring the brew he created when he took the fall for Two-Face's murders. We will neutralise him as a threat, as we will offer millions of dollars to whoever kills the Batman."

Joker shook his head adamantly.

"My life would get boring without him."

Scarecrow grinned.

"Ah, but you would win. If they work together, and trap him, he will end up having to kill people to escape. Thus, he will break his own rule and more people will lose faith in him. His reputation will be slowly destroyed, and he will be neutralised as a threat. While we do that, you two will resume your reign of terror on Gotham, and my fear toxin will drive people to the edge of madness. The entire city will be crippled, and it will be open to whatever you want to do to it." he explained.

Joker and Harley Quinn exchanged glances. Then they smiled manically.

"I like it. You do your plan. I introduce a little…anarchy, and that will defeat Batsy and Gotham." Joker purred.

Scarecrow grinned evilly.

"I told you I'd have my revenge Batman." he said under his breath.

He watch as Harley pulled out two massive shotguns from a crate.

"Here we go pudding!" she yelled gleefully, and the Joker laughed.

Gotham would soon know what darkness was.

**Hello there.**

**I fancied writing a different story from my usual culprits, and though of Batman, after seeing Dark Knight and buying it for £10 in Morrisons. :P**

**So here we are with a new story, which I will write more of if I get any more reviews. **

**Thus far, the Joker and Scarecrow have escaped, Harley Quinn has introduced herself and Batman has been shot. Im away to finish plotting out the rest of the story just now, so feel free to review if you want more!**

**Bye for now!**


	2. Stage 2: The Ascendance

**Disclaimer: I do not own Batman**

Gotham Nights

A slow fear was permeating Gotham the next morning. News of the Joker and Scarecrow's escape was all over the place, especially considering the fact that they'd had help. The fear that the Joker had caused a while before was creeping back in. The day was dark and dour, hinting of an oncoming storm.

In Wayne Towers, Alfred was busily making Bruce's breakfast. While he approved of him being Batman, he did wish he could get home a little earlier, and preferably not make as much noise when he did. He was like a teenager the noise he made. Alfred spooned two sugars into Bruce's coffee and observed the news as he did so.

The fact that the Joker was out was very disturbing. The Joker had nearly destroyed Gotham, and Bruce with his antics. He had also shattered Bruce by organising the death of Rachel Dawes. Alfred frowned sadly at the thought. Rachel had been a lovely girl, and her only failing was that she'd been dating Dent when the Joker had appeared. Alfred wished he'd convinced her to stay at Wayne Towers that fateful day.

Sighing, he put Bruce's breakfast onto a tray and entered the penthouse area where he and his master had been living since Ra's al Ghul had burned down Wayne Manor.

He took the tray through, and opened the door to his charge's room. He was immediately distracted by the sight of blood on the floor.

"Master Bruce?" he asked in concern.

Bruce gave a weary groan from the bed.

"Are you alright sir?" he asked, putting the tray down and rushing to the young man.

Bruce slowly pulled himself up, showing a puddle of blood that had absorbed into the bed covers.

"Master Bruce!" Alfred exclaimed with shock and concern.

"It's nothing Alfred."

Alfred shot him a dirty look.

"You've bled all over my clean sheets, have a gaping hole in your back and expect me to believe it's nothing!?"

Alfred put on his glasses and gently forced Bruce down as he observed the wound.

"How did this happen?" he demanded.

"Last night, when I was trying to stop them escaping. Scarecrow shot me." Bruce moaned as Alfred prodded the wound.

"Master Bruce, while I'm full of admiration for what you're doing in fighting crime, this has got to stop! You have limits master Bruce. Please don't make me bury you as well as your parents." he implored.

Bruce shot him a hurt look.

"Don't look at me like that. I worry about you. You're the closest thing to a son I have and I don't want you killed by any of the madmen you chase after. I know what you're doing is important, and that Gotham has certainly improved since you did all of this, but you have limits Master Bruce. And I don't want you to find them out when it's too late to do anything about it."

Bruce grunted and sat up, wincing heavily as he did so.

"Thanks Alfred. I know you're right. But I cant afford to rest now, especially now that the Joker's back in action."

Alfred sighed.

"Well if you insist on fighting the maniac, then you're going to hospital."

Bruce shook his head adamantly.

"Someone might recognise me. If it gets out that Batman was shot…"

Alfred gave a wheeze of exasperation.

"Master Bruce, you cant go around with a gaping hole in you! You might have kidney damage!"

Bruce shook his head.

"No Alfred. I'm thankful that you're looking out for me, but I cant afford to be identified."

Alfred gave a gobsmacked look as Bruce went to get dressed. Sighing, he called Lucius.

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Wayne Enterprises was the rest of the large penthouse building that they had been living in until Wayne Manor was rebuilt. It was a tall building, in the centre of the city, and it controlled all of Wayne Enterprises businesses across the world. In the capable hands of Lucius Fox, it was the centre of economical development in Gotham.

As Bruce entered, the one topic that was on everyone lips was the escape of Scarecrow and the Joker. Bruce ignored all this, even the stinging comments that he overheard that Batman had helped them to escape, and entered the CEO office.

"Morning Lucius." he said, sticking the kettle on.

Lucius looked up and smiled.

"Morning Mr Wayne. Busy night? Heard there was a hole blown in your plans."

Bruce shot him a withering glare.

"What's Alfred told you?"

"Only what I needed to know. For what its worth Mr Wayne, I agree with Alfred."

Bruce rolled his yes, and Lucius shrugged.

"Oh, Commissioner Gordon wishes to talk to you."

Bruce dropped his cup in surprise.

"Don't worry, I don't think he knows. He wants to talk about the experimental weapons we're bringing in next week."

Bruce sighed and picked up the broken shards of china.

"Don't do that to me." he complained.

Lucius smiled grimly.

"Mr Wayne, you need rest and treatment. Go to hospital."

"I'll be fine Lucius. But, is there any way we can make the suit more armoured?"

Lucius shook his head sadly.

"Afraid not. Not without making it back to the original version."

Bruce sighed, defeated.

"Thanks anyway."

Lucius nodded to him as he headed for the board meeting.

"Look after yourself. If anything happens, Alfred will have me strung up."

Bruce smiled. He knew they were trying to help. He looked out at the dour day. The Joker was out there, backed up by Scarecrow and the woman who got them out of there. He'd have to face them all eventually.

There was a knock at the door, and James Gordon came in.

James Gordon was now the Commissioner of Gotham City Police Force, credited with saving Gotham from a terrorist strike and for stopping the Joker's reign of terror. Since getting the top job he had vastly cleaned out his department, acting on Harvey Dent's information. Corruption in GCPD was at an all time low, many thugs had been taken off the streets and the Mob's power was severely weakened. However, he wasn't that strong a match for the Joker. Not yet anyway.

"Commissioner. Congratulations on your appointment." Bruce said, shaking his hand.

"Thank you sir." Gordon said, shaking back vigorously.

Gordon was a good and kind man. He had comforted Bruce after his parents had been murdered, and had remained a bulwark against corruption ever since. Bruce was considering revealing his true identity to the man, knowing that he wouldn't betray him.

"I want to talk to you about the weapon shipment you're bringing in next week. With the Joker running around again, we cant be sure its safe." he said, getting straight to business.

Bruce nodded gravely.

"I heard he escaped. How did he manage it?"

Gordon sighed.

"With help. Apparently the FBI knew of him from Washington. He had an accomplice, Dr Harleen Quinzel, alias Harley Quinn. They kept it quiet that she could factor in when we announced that we'd caught him. She bust him out, and they took Scarecrow, former Dr Jonathan Crane, with them."

Bruce shook his head.

"Bad news all around then. You think they will try to get the weapons?"

"I think it's a distinct possibility sir." Gordon said, stroking his moustache.

Bruce gave a great sigh, and got up. As he did, the world swirled around him and went black as he crashed to the floor.

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The black car came to a stop beside the old house. It was a grand place, of Italian design, in one of the wealthier parts of town. It was a black Alfa Romeo. As it stopped, two burly men got out from the front seats. They opened the door and a tall, skeletally thin man stood out. He had close cropped black hair, was dressed in a form hugging Armani suit and had a power about him that they couldn't quite place. He was thin and gaunt, and intelligent to boot.

He was Tommy Capricelli. He was the new Mob boss for Gotham City. After the disintegration of Carmine Falcone and Salvatore Maroni's organisations, along with the defeat of most of the other gangs in Gotham due to the Batman and the Joker and Harvey Dent, it was time that someone high up and ruthless went out and brought the formerly ludicrously profitable Gotham City back into the Mafia's fold.

"Mr Capricelli. Welcome to Gotham." a stooped man said.

"Thanks. Now, let's get this place back under control." he said with a grin.

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"Thank you." a familiar voice said.

Bruce woke up groggily. Looking around, he saw that he was in a hospital room, most likely in Gotham Central due to Gotham General being wiped out by the Joker.

"Mr Wayne. Good to see you're finally awake." a woman's voice said.

The woman came out from behind the screen. She was quite beautiful. She had dazzling green eyes, and vivid red hair. She wasn't particularly tall and seemed relatively normal in stature. However, something about the way she carried herself let Bruce know that she was a brilliant woman, was very intelligent and was quite capable of looking after herself.

"I am Doctor Pamela Isley. Alfred here was just telling me how you received your injury." she said, arching a pencilled eyebrow.

Bruce grunted and pulled himself up.

"How long have I been here?" he asked.

"A few hours. Now, stay there while I go and get your new injection."

As she left, Bruce's eye wandered over her body.

"Can I say it just this once?" Alfred asked as he appeared.

"If you must." Bruce said, sighing resignedly.

"Told you so." Alfred said, the mirth clear in his voice.

Bruce rolled his eyes.

"What happened?"

"I don't know enough about it. Commissioner Gordon was extremely quick off the mark. He got help for you within minutes. Lucius is calming it all down. And if anyone asks, you were out hunting with friends up north, and a bullet caught you by accident, but you refused to have it treated at anywhere buy Gotham." Alfred explained.

Bruce chuckled weakly.

"Thanks Alfred."

"But I did bloody tell you to go to hospital." he said, unable to restrain himself.

"Oh shoosh. What does she suspect?"

Alfred pursed his lips.

"I think we unfortunately have a perceptive woman on our hands, and I don't think she really believes me. But I don't think she'll say anything. Not without concrete proof anyway." Alfred counselled wisely.

"She seems nice."

Alfred's eyebrow raised.

"Oh yes?" he asked, teasingly.

Bruce shot him a dirty look as she entered the room.

"Well Mr Wayne. You've certainly had a bit of a bash, but I've done you up. You can go home anytime you wish. But I don't recommend going hunting for a while." she said, a glint in her eye.

Bruce smiled at her.

"Don't worry about that Doctor Isley. I'm going nowhere near any hunting grounds."

She grinned.

"No strenuous exercise. Your stitches are soluble, so will dissolve when they are finished with. But be careful lifting heavy objects in case the wound reopens."

Bruce nodded as he started to get up.

"And if you need me, Alfred has my number. Call me if you need me." she said.

"Well Doctor Isley, you've done me a great job. You're very good." Bruce said, feeling the wound.

She blushed a little.

"Thank you Mr Wayne. I will give Alfred instructions for your medication. Not that I don't trust you." she said with a wink.

Bruce began to get changed. She certainly had patched him up well. She could heard her telling Alfred what medication she was to take and when. Finishing getting changed into a shirt that Alfred had borrowed, he went outside to where Alfred was shaking Pamela's hand.

"Thanks doctor. He's a bloody nightmare to get to hospital." he whispered conspiratorially

"I'm right here you know." Bruce said, put out.

Pamela laughed, and listened to a call on the announcer before turning to them.

"Well, I best be getting on. Mr Wayne, a pleasure to meet you. Alfred, make sure your boss does as he's told." she said, mock-sternly.

"Oh he will, or he wont get out to play at night." Alfred said, shaking her hand.

Pamela shook Bruce's hand, and turned, then looked back.

"Oh, and be careful out there. Not safe with the Joker out anymore. Especially if the Batman's helping him."

"Batman fights for good!" Bruce said, a little too strongly and quickly.

Alfred went a bit paler beside him, and Pamela raised an eyebrow.

"Sorry. Just, he wouldn't have saved Gotham if he was another criminal would he?" he asked pointedly, trying to cover things up.

Pamela looked thoughtful about it.

"Well, safe journey. I'm on break, and if I don't hurry, the nurses will swipe all the custard creams. Nice to meet you both." she said, and dashed off.

Alfred let out a low whistle.

"That was a little too close for my liking. Come on. Lets get you out of here before you put your foot in it any further." Alfred said.

Smiling to himself, Bruce obeyed as Alfred pulled him along.

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Pamela sat down in her favourite seat, a comfy sofa. With a steaming mug of green tea in one hand, and a handful of custard creams in the other, she had all the signs of a perfect break. Except someone to talk to. As if on cue, her nurse, Sally, came in, made her own cup and sat down, a handful of digestives in opposition to Pam's custard creams.

"Well, what's he like!?" she asked excitedly.

A small, blonde, plump woman, she was Pam's best friend at the hospital. Like Pam, she had been getting transferred to Gotham General before the Joker had blown it up.

"What's who like?" Pam asked, sipping her tea.

"Duh! Bruce Wayne! Billionaire playboy, eligible bachelor and one of the hottest men in Gotham to boot!" she exclaimed excitedly.

Pam laughed.

"I don't believe you. The Joker and Scarecrow are running around amok, and you're only interested in what Bruce Wayne's like?" she asked incredulously.

Sally laughed too.

"Oh come on, the Joker's in prison."

Pam snorted.

"Honestly Sal, don't you watch the news? He escaped last night."

Sally looked a bit thrown by this comment, then shrugged.

"Ah well, who cares? What's Bruce Wayne like!?" she asked like a teenager at the prospect of meeting a rockstar.

Pamela rolled her eyes in amusement.

"Well he's relatively good looking." she purred.

"And?" Sally pressed excitedly.

"Well he seems nice enough. But he seems a bit, you know, distant."

"Distant?"

"Yes, distant."

Sally thought about this, then pressed on.

"So what was wrong with him?" she urged.

"Cant tell you Sal." Pamela said as the bell rang.

"Yes you can!"

"Oh no, doctor-patient confidentiality and all that." Pam said, and waved goodbye as she went out the door, leaving Sally fuming.

Pam mused on her latest patient as she went to see Mr Aitkens, and to check on his kidney stones. Bruce Wayne certainly was enigmatic. Mysterious, untouched by most, and she had treated him. Something to put in her memoirs.

He was certainly mysterious. And Pam couldn't shake the belief that she would soon be seeing rather a lot of him.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

The bank was small, on the edge of town. However, it was the local bank of one of the major betting shops. The bus pulled up beside it, then revved the engine so that the wall was brought crashing down.

"What the hell!?" the manager screamed as people ran crying out of the way.

He got his gun out of his belt and rushed out of his office.

The bus door opened, and Harley Quinn came out.

"Right folks, this is a raid! Everyone down on the floor!" she ordered.

"Excuse me, who do you think you are!?" the manager yelled, aiming his gun at her.

She laughed manically, and levelled her gun.

"Down honey." she said sweetly.

He shook his head, and fired at her. Harley cartwheeled out of the way and blasted him right in the chest. People on the floor screamed in terror as he dropped to the floor, blood pooling around him.

"Now, you all just sit there a sec." she purred.

Three men in clown masks got out of the bus, also armed with guns.

"Tie em up boys!" Harley said as she skipped through to the vault.

The three goons did as instructed as Harley looked at the vault. Sighing, she blew the latch with three bullets and it creaked open.

"Jackpot!" she said gleefully.

Outside, while she emptied the contents of the vault into her bag, the three goons had tied the customers up, who were all quivering in terror. They then saw the strange woman dressed in the jester's outfit skip out of the vault, a bag of cash in her holdall.

"Well done boys! You know what happens now?" she asked in a syrupy voice.

She then blew the brains of all three goons across the room with her gun, leaving the people screeching in terror and horror.

There was a sound from behind her, from the security guard.

"You maniacs are going to be locked up!" he said stoutly.

Harley began cackling insanely. It was in that moment that he understood that this woman was just as insane as her boss.

She knelt down beside him. He was an older man, but he still had the fire of youth burning within him. Not for long.

"Hey honey, let's no beat about the bush. I am robbing this bank. You are all trapped. Thus, no one in here, will stop me. The police cant stop us. With all that we're going to do, this city, this city, it'll dissolve within the month. And as for the Batman…well, he won't be able to stop us either. So you see sweetie, that leaves no one to stop us!" she said, clapping her hands in glee.

The man glared at her. Defiant. She liked that.

"Gotham will unite against you murderers, and you'll be stopped! I swear!" the man said, and others made noises of assent.

Harley laughed. She then took a small ball off her belt.

"You're sweet lovey. Real sweet. But you know, even if someone does try to stop us, um, I don't think you'll be here to see it!" she crowed, and showed him the ball.

It was a grenade.

"What're you going to do!?" the man asked.

Excellent. She had broken him. She could tell by the fear in his voice.

"Hmm. I'm going to carry out a physics experiment. I want to see how loudly you'll all scream as the counter goes down!"

She took out a small stop clock, and set it on the counter which many were looking at.

"See that clock? It's set at two minutes. When I start it, you start screaming."

"How?" a small boy who was in with his mother, asked in terror.

Harley laughed again.

"Don't teach you much at school do they?" she asked in a sugary tone.

The boy went white as she knelt down beside him.

"Because that clock has the same amount of time as the bomb until it goes off duckie." she purred.

The mother looked at Harley with imploring eyes.

"Please! He's just a child! Let him go! Please!" the woman begged.

Harley turned to face her. The woman's spirit broke as she looked into the white faced criminal.

"No." Harley said simply.

She then walked behind the desk they were tied to, and put a grenade into the boys hand. She then did the same with the old security guard. A line of string attached both rings to her. She walked to the door, picked up her bag, and skipped to the broken wall.

"That's all folks!" she said, then skipped out, cackling insanely.

She then came back in, pressed the clock on, and pulled the string. The two pins fell out of the grenades.

"Goodbye!" she said happily and left.

As she did, the screams and cries got louder and louder.

She slid into the Ford Fiesta, and prodded Scarecrow awake.

"Reverse." she said, throwing the money into the back.

Scarecrow brushed his hair out of his eyes and put his foot down. The car shot backwards.

"You said no explosions." he said sternly.

Harley gave him a toothy smile.

"I lied!" she said brightly.

They got to a safe distance.

"Any time…" Harley said.

A massive explosion ripped out down the street.

"Now!" Harley cried in jubilation.

Fire blasted out from the bank, and the bus was blown backwards with tremendous force. It crashed into the building opposite, and then blew up also. Rubble fell about the street, and fire blazed from both locations. Charred bodies that had been caught in the blast were lying on the ground. The bank was in ruins, the building sagging backwards with the vast majority of the main foyer missing. Windows had been smashed, and smoke was billowing from all possible openings.

Secondary explosions ripped into the apartment block the bus had been blown into, and the entire complex then disintegrated into rubble.

"Oh, you got to be kidding me! That was amazing!" she screamed in joy.

Scarecrow, despite himself, was mildly impressed.

"Impressive. Most impressive." he conceded.

Cackling madly, Harley pointed to the approaching police cars. Scarecrow reversed them into an alley, and they drove off.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

The man stood on the shadowy street corner, watching intently. Hudson Overpass connected several business centres to one another, and was the main form of connection for businessmen.

At that precise moment of time, it was the lunch hour, and many cars were going back and forth over it, heading back to their respective offices. A tight, efficient system.

However, if one thing was disturbed, chaos would reign.

The man grinned wickedly, his red painted scars widening as he did so. A policeman over the way saw the man raise his head.

"Stop the car! It's the Joker!" he cried.

The Joker saw them, and grinned wickedly. The two policemen scrambled out of the car, their guns being brought out from their excessive waistlines.

"Hello boys! Be with you in just a minute. I've got a masterpiece to finish!" Joker crowed, and raised a small remote.

The lead policeman saw what he was going to do and aimed. It was too late. The Joker pressed the button on the remote, and an explosion ripped the motorway out from underneath the two men. Six cars fell from the top level onto the second level, which was also blown apart, sending a cascade of cars and bodies falling from the various levels of the overpass. Cars thudded to the bottom, where they exploded, taking out more cars that were going along the street below the pass, and people were killed in the resulting explosions. The Joker gave an insane cackle and shimmied down the service ladder to a waiting Ford Fiesta.

"That was great puddin!" Harley cried as she kissed him.

"Great fun! Come on Wurzel, get us out of here!"

Scarecrow drove the car away as fire spewed behind them and destroyed cars and bodies smouldered.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

The crime wave continued. After blowing a hole in the overpass, the Joker and Harley raided another bank, flooding it with gas grenades. As the people suffocated around them, they broke the vault and hopped off with the cash.

Meanwhile, Scarecrow was in the hideout, busily working on his fear toxin, which he would use to break Gotham.

Later, a police car, with two policemen inside eating doughnuts was idling in a hard shoulder. As the driver finished his last one, he turned to let himself out to put the rubbish in the bin.

The door was locked.

"Hey, did you lock the door?" he asked his companion.

"No. Why?"

"No. I did." a gravely voice said from behind them.

They both spun around to see the Joker, grinning manically.

"Morning." he said politely, his grin widening.

"How did you get in here!?" the passenger demanded in fear.

"Through the door."

"When!? We'd have heard you come in!" the driver protested.

The Joker laughed sarcastically.

"Very careless, you leaving the door open like that while you went to get your, um, snack. Any lunatic could have gotten in." Joker purred.

"We don't need to be scared of you." the passenger said definitely as he slowly brought his gun out.

"Um, yes you do. See, you police boys are all part of the established order. But, all it takes is a person like me for example, to come along, and the entire thing…disintegrates."

The passenger had his gun out at last and cocked it. The next second, the Joke leaned forward and stuffed a small canister in his mouth and took his gun. He moved with such swiftness that he stuck a piece of masking tape on the passenger's mouth before he could register what had happened. The man couldn't get it out of his mouth, and the Joker then took his two hands, forced them onto the dashboard and slammed his shotgun's handle into them with such force that his fingers broke. The passenger made a noise that could qualify as a scream, then started to whimper. The driver was trying determinedly to get out, but to no avail. The Joker then pulled him back against the seat.

"Don't you know its rude to walk out on someone?"

The Joker then dragged the man out of his seat and into the back of the car. A small wicked knife appeared in his hands, and he pressed it into the man's mouth.

"Do you want to know how I got these scars?"

The man looked at him in terror.

"You see, where I lived, it was a nasty area. Drugs, gangs, violence… So, one day, I'm walking home, and this kid, high on drugs, comes up to me. He demands I hand over my money. I naturally refuse. He doesn't like that. Not at all. He tackles me and forces me down, and brings out a knife, just like this one. He presses it into my mouth, and asks 'its only a bit of money. Nothing important. So, why so serious?'. I don't answer, and he cuts…right up, to give me the so called Glasgow smile. Since, I'm always the exact opposite of serious. So, what I ask you is…why…so…serious!?"

The Joker then sliced the knife through the man's throat, and he was dead. The Joker then leaned forward and forced the hysterical passenger to stare at him.

"Why so serious?" he asked, and punched the man in the mouth.

As blood poured from the man, a blue gas seeped out from his mouth. A second later, the man was screaming uncontrollably, and crying his eyes out.

"Yep. Definitely works." Joker said gleefully, and picked up his phone.

"Right Wurzel, it works brilliantly. This guys gone Daffy Duck on me!"

He heard the satisfaction in Scarecrow's voice.

"Excellent. See you later. Enjoy yourself."

"I intend to."

He hung up, and finally unlocked the doors. He shoved the blood stained body in the back out of the car, and then turned to the hysterical other man.

"Come on. Show and tell!"

The Joker got out the car, walked around and dragged the man out. A crowd of people who had seen the body drop out watched in horror as the Joker pressed the man in front of them.

"He's but a taster!" he promised gleefully.

He then ripped the tape off, and let the man sink to the floor, where he blubbered ceaselessly. People watched in shock and horror.

"You know, chaos is essential. You selfish people never understood that. That's why I'm here. Chaos is needed, in life. Otherwise, it's…pointless. But, when a guy tries to help…you, uh, brand him a _crazy_ criminal. See, I don't hold grudges, usually, but, well, I tried to help, and you threw it back at me. So, a little payback is in order. Then, then we'll be even."

The Joker, who had his audience transfixed, then quietly took a grenade off his belt and stuck it down the policeman's shirt.

"We're even." he whispered as he took out the pin.

He got into the car and drove off, then stuck his head out of the window.

"Introduce a little anarchy, remove the status quo, and kill the ones who don't really matter, and everything dissolves into red, bloody chaos! People protest and cry out, and everything falls apart like a sand castle in a whirlwind. Gotham's the sandcastle, and we're the whirlwind! See ya later!"

He turned the corner, and as he did so, the grenade went off.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

The Joker went tearing along the streets in the car, his machine going off and mowing down pedestrians as he sped past them. Cackling insanely, he checked under the steering wheel for the bomb he had planted. There was enough explosive material to level a building packed into the insides of the car. The car was headed for one particular place.

Gotham Duke Street Train Station was the main terminus for all trains in Gotham. At that precise moment of time, a train bearing ammunitions for a military base in Arizona was passing through. It was going to be blown up.

He burled the car around the corner, and saw the train, a massive, boxy green model, carrying massive carriages. He began laughing manically.

"All comes to chaos. 'Get in the middle of a chain reaction'." he sang, and revved the engine.

He then shot forward in the car, heading straight for the massive train. Two more passenger trains were just arriving under the platform awnings. The middle track. He had to get to the middle track.

People who saw him coming screamed and leapt out of the way, but others didn't. The Joker laughed as he heard the sickening crunch of bone and flesh as the car rolled over them.

"Five, four, three, two, one!" he cried, then sprang out of the car, rolling to his feet and whipping out his gun.

The car shot off the platform, and hurtled right into the ammo train. There was a split second delay.

Then the car exploded. The inferno spread right up the length of the track, then caught the two other trains in the blast, incinerating the people inside the metal carriages as the intense heat spread. People screamed as the blast dislodged the glass roof and sent hundreds of thousands of shards of glass falling towards them. Metal electricity poles fell and crushed people, and massive fuses blew out, blowing things into bits.

The Joker was cackling manically as the awnings of stone above them were dislodged and fell to the ground, crushing more people.

"That went well." the Joker said proudly, and skipped away from the station, as the main infrastructure crumbled and the first two platforms were destroyed.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Scarecrow finished injecting the small amount of air into the toxin mixture. There were still hundreds of caches of the stuff hidden across the city, and due to the death of Ra's al Ghul, Scarecrow was the only one alive who knew were they all were. He'd taken a small amount, and was making it into a more potent mixture, that would drive people totally insane through fear a lot quicker. While the Joker didn't have a plan, or so he claimed, Scarecrow did.

And he knew Batman wouldn't like it one bit.

The door to the hideout opened, and Harley Quinn sprang in, looking delighted. She, like the Joker, had been slaughtering her way across Gotham with drive-bys, while the Joker had been blowing up the station.

"About time. I'm almost ready to go. You better hold up your part of the bargain."

Harley linked her arms around him. Scarecrow knew she was obviously flirting with him, but wasn't about to respond to the bait.

"I will sugar." she said sweetly.

The door banged open, and the Joker strolled in. The Joker's eyes narrowed when he saw Harley clasping her hands around Scarecrow. Scarecrow looked up, and saw that the Joker was only glaring at Harley, so went back to work.

The Joker then grabbed Harley roughly by the wrist, and forced her down to the ground.

"You know how I got these scars don't you?" he asked maliciously.

"Yes puddin! Don't worry, I weren't betraying you!" she wailed.

He took out his knife, and went to put it into Harley's mouth, but Scarecrow stopped him.

"We need her in one piece for tonight." he warned quietly.

The Joker stood up, and went to check on his weapons.

"He loves me really. We just play fight." Harley said in a confident voice.

Scarecrow arched his eyebrow as she went off after her master.

Some people were so deluded.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"'Hundreds of people have been killed in today's attacks, with the destruction of a section of the Hudson Overpass and the bombing of Gotham Duke Street Station. Various banks have been robbed and drive-bys perpetrated by both the Joker and his new assistant, going by the name of Harley Quinn. The GCPD has been run off its feet with various reports. The utmost is being done to apprehend these criminals, and we urge Gotham City to be vigilant." the reporter on TV said.

Bruce narrowed his eyes in rage. The Joker had lost all bounds now, and had gotten ten times worse. He had to stop him.

"Master Bruce, you aren't seriously thinking of going out again?" Alfred demanded in shock as he saw Batman make for the route from the penthouse to the hangar below where he kept his Batman things.

"I have to Alfred. The Joker, Scarecrow and Harley Quinn are getting more and more dangerous. Look at all they've done today. They'll just do more."

Alfred sighed, then pulled Bruce to the couch and sat him down. Alfred sat down opposite him and looked into his eyes.

"Did you ever hear about a little country called Messina?"

Bruce shook his head.

"I don't have time for this Alfred."

Alfred shot him a penetrating glance, and Bruce kept quiet.

"It's in Africa. Belongs to South Africa now. Anyway, this dictator takes over. And always at his arm is this gorgeous young woman. Lovely looking girl. Now, every night, in clean view of his people, he takes her out onto the balcony of the palace and beats her, because she was a woman, and he believed women were second class. Yet she still stayed with him, as she loved him."

Bruce looked confused.

"What does this have to do with me?" he queried.

"I'm talking about that woman of the Joker's. He obviously mistreats her, and she accepts it."

"So?"

"Well, I haven't finished me story have I? Well, the dictator stays in power a couple of years, and then these rebel soldiers get into the palace. They get to the throne room without firing a shot. Now, even his own generals had turned against him, and they all knew he wouldn't go quietly, so they had to get rid of him. The rebels enter, aim for the leader, and shoot. But he doesn't die. His woman, this mistreated and abused girl leaps in front of him leaps in front of him and takes the bullet. She gave herself up for love. She sacrificed herself on the misguided notion that despite all he does to her, he loves her. And you know what he does when she takes the bullet? Laughs."

Alfred fell silent.

"I take it that's a warning that Harley Quinn, even though the Joker doesn't love her, he will use her because she loves him?"

Alfred nodded.

"Love is a dangerous thing master Bruce. Misguided love especially."

Bruce stood, and smiled grimly.

"Thanks Alfred. I'll remember that."

And he vanished.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Arkham Asylum was dark and quiet. All was in darkness, with no moon and all the smoke rising into the air after the days nightmarish events. After the break-out of the Joker and his cohorts, security had been intensified to prevent anyone getting anyone out.

But that was only on the inside.

On the outside, an entire stretch of wall was rigged with small shaped charges. A bit away from the wall was a box, full of guns of various strength and power. And beside the box was Scarecrow, once again in his sack mask. He had a small remote in his hand. In the other was a phone.

He speed dialled the first number.

"I'm in position."

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

A couple of kilometres along the road was the Gotham Chemical Plant, where oil was distilled into various fractions for export. And it was here that the Joker was. The three thugs he'd found where backing him up. He'd received Scarecrow's call, and agreeing to follow the plan for a change, he was doing the guy a favour.

The plant was shutting for the night. The last three trucks, full of natural gas were leaving the plant. Two went past, and as the third was coming up, the Joker and his goons moved. One of them leapt into the truck's path, thinking it would stop. However, the Joker had timed it so that he would be run over rather than stop the driver. As the man was crushed under the gargantuan wheels of the truck, the driver stopped, and opened his door. The Joker then entered the cab from the other door, and put his gun to the back of the guy's head.

"Sorry, I want to drive." he said, and fired.

The dead body toppled out of the car, and the Joker gave a maniacal laugh. The other two folk clambered in, and the Joker turned to them.

"Heres a riddle for you. What do you do with out of date food?"

The two goons, dressed in clown masks, looked at each other in confusion.

"You get rid of it."

The Joker then fired two more bullets off, and their bodies fell out of the cab.

"I prefer the silent drive." he said, and phoned Scarecrow.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"Excellent." Scarecrow said as he hung up.

He pressed the remote and the wall was blown to smithereens, revealing the disorientated prisoners within.

"If you want out of there, follow me!" Scarecrow said.

They all clambered out the small holes and rushed to Scarecrow.

"Good choice boys. Now, take a gun and let's go!"

As they did so, massive spotlights thundered on and covered them all in a blaze of light.

"Stop! This is the Gotham City Police Department! We have you surrounded!" Gordon's voice boomed across the area.

"Oh good." Scarecrow said, and phoned Harley and the Joker.

It had begun.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

The Gotham Slaughter House truck was passing down an alleyway that would take it to the freeway outside the city. However, a van was blocking the alleyway exit. The driver cursed and honked the horn. As he did so, the door beside him opened.

"Hey honey. Sorry about this, but I need some wheels." Harley purred and blew the man's head off.

She dragged his body out and clambered in, flashing the lights so that the thugs she'd hired would move the van. They did so, then came up the alley to meet her. Cackling evilly, she gunned the trucks engine and drove right over them. She then flicked a switch, and the hundreds of sheep in the back were suddenly released.

"Off you go little sheepies! Now, lets go play with the pigs!" she cried in joy, and took the truck out of the alley and sent it towards Arkham, phoning as she did so.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

The police cordon around Scarecrow and his ill-gotten help was made up of cars and vans, along with several prisoner transport vehicles. Gordon surveyed the situation grimly. Two policemen had already been killed by Scarecrow's thugs and their weapons. However, the police had numbers and position, and Scarecrow was trapped.

"Oh Commissioner!" Scarecrow cried.

Gordon narrowed his eyes behind his glasses at the man in the sack-mask.

"Catch!" Scarecrow said in a poisonously triumphant voice.

Gordon knew what was coming.

"Duck and cover!" he cried.

The canister landed in front of several officers, and the blue gas went straight for them. They immediately began hallucinating.

"No! Get away! Back away! He's got his fear gas!" Gordon cried, taking his gun out and firing a few potshots at Scarecrow.

He then saw Scarecrow laughing evilly.

"That cant be good." Gordon said, and turned to see what he was laughing at.

A massive fuel truck, with the Joker at the wheel, was coming straight for them. The Joker was cackling as he threw open the door and leapt out.

"SCATTER!" Gordon bellowed.

His men jumped to the task, but it wasn't quick enough. The truck smashed into the first car, and the massive gas filled trailer toppled over. It then exploded, sending out a massive fireball that took out many cars and vans and sent flaming policemen to their deaths.

"Come together!" he yelled.

His remaining men marshalled together as Scarecrow and the thugs and the Joker came at them, all firing their guns.

"Take cover!" Gordon cried as bullets from the Joker's machine gun crashed into the car beside him.

Gordon then saw an upcoming shot. Scarecrow was running out of firepower, and would have to reload. If he could take him out, the thugs may panic.

Gordon cocked his gun.

"Be careful!" Ramirez called.

Gordon was about to shoot Scarecrow when another machine round from the Joker made him put his head back down. As he ducked, another truck came screeching up. The thugs clambered into the back, while Scarecrow and the Joker ran to the cab.

"Shoot! fire!" Gordon yelled.

The police, unencumbered now, all popped up and began shooting. Bullets pinged off of the metal truck as the two criminals clambered into the cab. Harley Quinn then sprang out, equipped with a grenade launcher.

"Scatter!" Gordon screamed.

She fired, and the canisters of gas shot out.

"Hit the dirt! It's the fear gas!" Gordon, who had an immunity to it, bellowed.

With most of the enemies removed, Harley ran to the back of the truck, avoiding Gordon's shots.

"NO! Blast it!" Gordon screamed in rage as the truck began to move away.

"Sir!" Ramirez called, pointing to a dust cloud.

Gordon allowed himself a small smile.

"It's Batman." he said in relief.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Batman was coaxing every bit of speed out of the Batpod that he could. He saw the fiery wreckage that had been the police cordon a few minutes before. That would be Gordon's problem.

He accelerated, and was getting closer. He could see Harley Quinn in her jester outfit aiming a gun at him. He put on the breaks, expanded his cape and flew straight at her.

Harley gave a squeal as he landed beside her, and punched her in the stomach. As she doubled over, Batman threw a Batarang at the control panel, shutting the various thugs in the various cells of the slaughter truck. Now it was him and Harley.

Whoever was driving must have known Batman was there as they were driving like they'd been drinking, obviously trying to dislodge him from the vehicle, which was picking up speed. Behind it, the Batpod was accelerating, its remote control, operated by Alfred from the penthouse, was keeping up.

Harley had recovered and aimed a high kick at Batman. Batman ducked and grabbed her leg, yanking it so that she crashed onto her back. She hissed in pain as she thudded down, then kicked him with her other foot. The shock of the hit threw Batman off her. He wasn't as fast as he normally was, or as good. His wound was still affecting him obviously. Harley smiled, her black painted lips forming a wide grin.

"Come on Batman! You know who I am! Come and get me!" she taunted.

She was clearly a mad as the Joker, and clearly wanted to break Batman like he did. She dashed at Batman, but he was ready for her. He leapt up to the next ramp, and then came hurtling down at her, crashing his shoulder into her. She gave a frightened squeak as she was knocked into the wall of the truck. Batman then fired his wire gun at her, allowing the wire to wrap around her.

"Got ya." he muttered.

Harley gave a cackle, and did the splits. Batman was pulled down by the unexpected move, and Harley wriggled out of the rope as it had yet to tauten. She then leapt onto Batman, who was still off-balance from her trick. Batman crashed backward into a pile on manure, and Harley crashed her knees into his chest.

"Aw, Batman, I thought you were better." she said sweetly, and pulled out a knife.

"I am." he growled.

He fired the blades from his wrist gauntlet and they sliced across her suit, making her yelp in pain. He then crashed his feet into her before springing up. Harley sagged against the opposite wall, and Batman hurtled right at her. She then gave a coy smile, and a barrier shot up right in front of him. Unprepared, he crashed right into it, and was thrown into another barrier as she activated the entire lot. He could hear her laughing madly.

"Alfred, fire at the truck." he whispered.

"But…" Alfred objected, miles away.

"Do it." he said, and vaulted over the barrier.

Harley wasn't there. As he looked around in confusion, Harley's feet smashed into his back, and he landed at an awkward angle at the bottom of the cage. He rolled over to avoid her stamping foot, and then hit her in the stomach so that she bowled over into the next cage. He leapt after her, and saw that this was the end of the line. As the door should be closed, there was nothing stopping either of them falling out. Harley was pulling herself up as he arrived. He punched her in the cheek, and she fell to the ground with a screech, and he held her over the rim of the truck.

"Come on Batman! Kill me, you'll only have to kill Jokesy and the Scarecrow! Do it!" she encouraged happily.

"Not a chance." Batman grunted, and prepared another rope.

Harley gave an inexplicable grin.

"The Joker said ya wouldn't. Bye for now Batman. Maybe next time, you'll develop some balls to do what _needs_ to be done, rather than what you want to do." she purred.

Batman looked at her in shock, as she sliced his wrist with her knife. He felt blood gush from the wound as he recoiled, and then knew she had him. Her feet slammed him backwards, and she got up and grabbed his wrist.

"Bon voyage!" she shouted as the truck picked up speed as it was leaving immediate danger.

She then put all her weight into throwing Batman out of the way, and he went flying out of the truck, crashing to the road as the truck made it's escape. Harley gave a cheery wave and shut the door. At that minute the Batpod appeared and fired two harpoons. The harpoons blew through the door, and Batman gave a grim smile when he saw that Harley was minus her jester's hat and was screeching abuse at him. However, it was too little, too late, and the truck faded into the distance of the freeway.

"Blast." he grunted as he got onto the bike.

They had escaped again, and Batman wasn't as good as he normally was. His previous wounding had cost him a bit he reckoned. He sighed.

"I need a holiday." he said wearily, and headed for home.

Alfred would not be happy with the new wound. On the other hand, he may get to see the attractive doctor about it. Slightly mollified, he vanished into the night.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"Batman failed as well." Gordon reported to Anthony Garcia, Gotham's mayor.

There was a despairing sigh from the other end.

"It's not your fault Jim. We just aren't equipped to deal with the Joker's madness all over again. Sit tight." Garcia said, and hung up.

Gordon closed his eyes wearily. Twenty cops dead, and twice that injured. Also, ten of them had been hit by the fear toxin. Ten cars destroyed, along with eight vans. The Joker had escaped with his cohorts, and some of Arkham's most dangerous criminals were now with Gotham's greatest opponents.

It hadn't been a good day.

"It's days like this that make you want to stay in bed." he said wearily.

**The Joker is back with a vengeance! **

**Batman and Gordon have both failed to catch the lunatic and his allies, and things are about to get worse. There were some bad guys introduced this chapter, and some of you should already know who one will be. Stay tuned for that one.**

**What will happen next? All I can tell you is the next stage is called the Pinnacle, and the Joker and his friends get even more ambitious!**

**Deaths and flirting abound next chapter!**

**Please read and review, as I am really enjoying writing this.**

**P.S I know it may not affect you, but could you please vote in ym poll? I would be very appreciative!**

**Bye for now!**


	3. Stage 3: The Pinnacle

**Disclaimer: I do not own Star Wars**

Gotham Nights

What was a slow permeation of fear the day previous had now become a current of terror spreading through Gotham. The Joker, Harley and Scarecrow had evaded justice and had declared war on Gotham, and the people were scared. People travelled the streets in dense clusters, afraid that the Joker and his allies would appear at any time.

While Gotham shivered in terror, Bruce was waiting in the ward for Dr Isley.

"Mr Wayne, back again?" she asked.

Totally awake and alert this time, he took her in a bit better. As he'd noticed she wasn't that tall, with a medium build. She was relatively slim, with her vivid red hair piled into a French twist. She had small green rimmed glasses around her bright green eyes. Her nails were immaculate, and he could see that she had very nice legs.

"Yes doctor." he said sheepishly.

"What have you done to yourself this time?" she asked, shaking her head in amusement.

"I had a disagreement with the mandolin. The mandolin won." he said, impressed with the fib.

She tutted and took the wrist Harley had sliced.

"Ouch. Nasty. You've done well to keep it in one piece though. I'll fetch my stitches." she said.

Bruce hummed happily until she returned. Despite the fact that the Joker and his goons were running amok, he was in a relatively good mood. His wound from two nights before felt a lot better, and his other one didn't bother him much.

"Well, let's have a looksy." she said.

Her hands were soft and gentle as she stitched him up.

"You're very good doctor." he commented.

A smile played across her face, making her look more beautiful.

"Thank you. Terrible business about the Joker escaping with all those prisoners escaping last night." she said.

He decided to play the ignorant play boy to be on the safe side.

"Really? Pity."

She nodded as she sewed his skin back together.

"I hope he's locked up soon. He's already blown up one hospital. I'd rather he didn't do that again. Knowing my luck I'd be in it." she said lightly.

"You cant think like that." Bruce chastised.

"Perhaps not. There you are."

Bruce smiled at her as he surveyed her handiwork. She was indeed very good.

"Thanks Doctor Isley. You're very good."

She smiled at him.

"Thank you Mr Wayne. And you're certainly one of my better patients. You have no idea how nice it is not having to deal with hypochondriacs or dirty old men or horrid teenagers with problems with keeping their wandering assets under control. Much nicer having a mature man, who doesn't whinge all the damn time." she said.

Bruce grinned at her.

"I'll take that as a compliment."

"You should. But if you tell anyone I said it, I'll kill you. And I could do it without leaving a trace." she warned coyly.

Bruce smiled at her as he made ready to leave.

"I'll keep that in mind. Thanks for patching me up again doc."

She smiled at him.

"That's quite alright. If you have any residual pain, come to me and I'll try you on some of my homeopathic remedies. Just because I'm a fully qualified doctor in western medicine doesn't mean I don't have a major in eastern." she said, winking.

"I'll remember that. See you round."

He then left, and Pam went to the staff room, smiling.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Bruce walked outside the hospital and was still smiling as he got into the car when Alfred drove up.

"Well?"

"All done." Bruce answered happily.

"You seem very cheery this morning sir." Alfred commented.

"No law against that is there?" Bruce asked lightly.

Alfred eyed him beadily through the mirror, then chuckled.

"I knew it! You're sweet on the doctor!"

Bruce was enraged to find a blush coming up on his cheeks.

"I don't know what you're talking about." he said airily.

Alfred chuckled as he drove on.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Pam was fighting with the milk when Sally arrived.

"Well? What was it for this time?" she asked, wasting no time.

"Is there nothing sacred in this place?" Pam asked in amusement.

"No. So, what was the illustrious and drop dead gorgeous Bruce Wayne in for today?"

"Cant tell you that." Pam teased, stirring her camomile tea.

"Pam, this was nothing more than a patching up. I can check the records. But, you know how much I hate doing that, and then I shall be very grumpy for the rest of the day, and you don't want that. So why not cut out the middle man and save us both time and effort and stress?" she asked brightly.

Pam laughed.

"Oh alright. He had an argument with his mandolin and sliced his wrist. Silly sod."

Sally grinned.

"Silly sod? Far nicer than what you normally call such people with those injuries."

Pam arched an eyebrow as she raided the biscuit tin. Some nefarious so and so had nicked her custard creams, so she was reduced to ginger snaps.

"What's your point?" she asked, a little irritably as she sat down, without her precious custard creams.

"Oh come on! You like him!" Sally cried in mirth.

"Rubbish." Pam said disdainfully.

"Admit it! You like him!"

Pam shot Sally a glare as her pager went off.

"I have my sights on better people than billionaires." she said loftily, and set off.

"Even if they are rather handsome." she muttered quietly.

"I heard that!" Sally shouted in joy.

Pam smiled.

"Be quiet. And don't you dare look in his file, or else. It's for his doctors eyes only." she warned, wagging her finger.

"Why? Got a secret picture of him in there have you?" she teased.

Pam shot her a dirty look, but couldn't stop the smile, so left the room while Sally laughed in triumph.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Capricelli frowned as he looked at the inner pages of the newspaper. Various upstart lawyers were certainly getting too big for their boots. With the death of Harvey Dent, the post of DA was open, and many enthusiastic lawyers wanted the position to bring order to Gotham. Now that Gotham was slowly beginning to change, they all wanted to make an imprint on the changing face of the city. However, that interfered with his own plans.

"These lawyers, they're getting too smart. Have a half dozen meet with an accident." he ordered.

His assistant balked.

"But boss, they notice when lawyers are killed now!"

Capricelli glared at the man.

"Use your head idiot. The Joker is making a mess of things. People are too busy to notice dead lawyers. But even if they aren't, we can blame the Joker and his maniacs." he said confidently.

Yes, the Joker proved a useful diversion. Enough so that they could remind Gotham of who were the true rulers of the city.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

The assembly inside the middle school was in progress. A policeman was in, telling the kids how best to keep safe in these troubles.

"Now, what must you always remember?" he asked a small boy kindly.

"To look behind you." a voice came.

Two holes then appeared in the man's chest and blood flew everywhere as the Joker, along with Harley and several goons appeared. The kids immediately started to scream, and the teachers looked to protect their charges.

"Good morning folks! We're the entertainment! Now, my lovely assistant here will collect all your valuables, and that'll be it. If you comply, we don't kill anyone." the Joker dictated.

Harley went around collecting mobiles and jewellery from the teachers. Then a small boy from the sixth grade stood up.

"No, Tim, sit down!" the teacher barked in terror.

"We don't need to be afraid of you!" the boy said with spirit.

The Joker laughed manically.

"That was good kid. Actually, in essence, you'd be right. You don't need to be scared of me." he said.

Something in the Joker's voice gave the head teacher pause. The man came over and glared up at the Joker.

"Why wouldn't we need to be scared of you?" he asked.

Harley cackled.

"Can I pudding?" she pleaded, battering her eyelids.

"Knock yourself out honey." he said sweetly.

Harley promptly shot him and he fell, and the kids screamed again.

"Thank you very much folks, but I've got a lot of anarchy to spread. Cheerio!"

He then left the hall, his goons following. Harley made a call as she left.

A teacher stood at the front, taking charge and preventing the situation from turning to chaos.

"Get the kids out. First class, on you go." he said, directing a class of sixth graders out of the hall.

A class and a half later, he heard revving, and hoped that it was the police. But the office staff had apparently been killed, as two other staff had told him sickly. A class and a half had left, and their teachers were calming them down outside the school in the playground.

The wall then fell down as a massive bus drove in, crushing several screaming students. The teacher gave a heavy sigh, knowing what was about to happen. His only regret was that all the children still in the hall were going to die.

If only he'd just let them storm the exits…

The bus exploded.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Tim Drake, the young boy who had stood up to the Joker, watched as his school was ripped apart in a massive explosion. Children screamed around him, as did the staff. The Joker had just made the war personal by attacking innocent children.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

While the school was blown up by a rigged bus, the Joker and Harley were already on their way to another location.

"That was great Mr J!" Harley squealed in delight as they drove into a side street beside the railway bridge.

His team of goons that had arrived earlier appeared.

"It's ready boss." one said.

The Joker grinned as he saw the twelve o'clock express hurtling over the bridge.

"This is why you don't use public transport." he said, grinning maliciously.

The bomb ripped apart the bridge as the two trains thundered towards the centre. They then plummeted down the massive gaping hole in the centre of the bridge, and both trains were crushed as they impacted the hard concrete many levels below. Cars below them screeched away, and many were crushed by falling girders or loose carriages.

"That was good!" the Joker cackled insanely.

"Where next puddin?" Harley asked excitedly.

The Joker grinned.

"It's a surprise." he said with a wink.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

The BMS Security System HQ was their target. Full of security forces and boxes, it was a raiders dream. So, the Joker was here.

Wasting no time, he crashed the car through the glass front, and sprang out, dropping both guards with a gun, while Harley machine gunned the people behind the desk.

"Hey, get out of here!" a man yelled.

A security guard had appeared, and was firing a shotgun. The Joker blanched as one blast caught him in the side.

"AAAH!" Harley screamed in terror.

The man turned to her.

"Down!"

The guard then groaned as he was tackled off his feet by a laughing Joker.

"What!? How aren't you dead!?" he demanded.

The Joker grinned, licking his lips.

"You see, I believe whatever doesn't kill you simply makes you stranger." he said grimly, then slit the man's throat.

"Mr J! Are you alright darlin!?" Harley squealed in terror.

"I'm fine. Now, let's see what we cant get here." he said.

The job was quick and efficient. Harley used the computer to override all the locks and all the boxes opened. After clearing them out, she put a grenade in each one, waiting for the remote to be connected.

"Ready Harley?" he asked as he linked it up.

"Yeah!" she said happily.

They left the building, and hid over the street, as a dozen armed policemen arrived. They entered, raising their guns.

"On you go sugar." the Joker said sweetly.

Harley delighted in pressing the button, and a massive broiling flame shot out, totally incinerating the policemen within.

"Woo!"

The Joker grinned as they took one of the police cars. He phoned Scarecrow.

"They're distracted. Make your move." he said.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Scarecrow pulled the truck alongside the police headquarters. This was going to go down in history as one of the most daring actions ever. He had brought twenty of his escapees to perform the deed.

He pulled on is sack mask, activated his toxin dispensers, pulled out his gun and nodded to his men.

They left, with ten following him, while the other ten split up into two groups and headed for the two side exits. Scarecrow ascended the stairs and opened the door. The man at the desk beside it was busy filling something in, and looked up a second too late to raise the alarm. Scarecrow shot the man.

"Bob, what's…?" a woman came out, and saw them.

"Scarecrow!" she cried.

He grinned and hit her with his toxin and she fell to the floor in hallucinations.

"We're in. Come on. We need to get to the pad on the top of the building." he said.

He set off, trusting his other goons to do their part. Two policemen were approaching them from down the stairs.

"It's Scarecrow!" one cried in terror.

Scarecrow grinned and shot one in the chest. However, his partner was rather quicker on the uptake, and shot one of Scarecrow's thugs in the shoulder. He fell back and knocked the three men behind him down the stairs. Scarecrow rolled his eyes as the man ran for it up the stairs. He heard two gunshots.

"I take it that wasn't one of my men." He said resignedly.

To answer this, a blaring alarm went out.

"Typical."

He turned the corner to find the man breathing hard. Scarecrow blasted him with his gas, as his goons returned.

"Sorry boss." The wounded one said meekly.

Scarecrow shot him in exasperation.

"Come on, the hornets will be stirring." He grunted.

The alarms blared as they stalked through the police department. Three took up positions in the stairs and fired at the advancing criminals. Scarecrow selected a small grenade off his pocket and threw it, and his gas spread everywhere, as he'd now started to produce it in weaponised form. Two others appeared from nowhere, and Scarecrow fired his gun into the two of them. They cleared the first level, and many of the police were waiting for them. Casually removing the machine gun from his belt, he cut them all down.

After casually slaughtering his way through the police station, Scarecrow and his thugs finally arrived at the helicopter pad.

"Right, let's go." Scarecrow said to one of his men.

When selecting people for the job, he'd carefully got ones who actually could fly helicopters.

"Boss, what do we need it for?" his pilot asked as the five of them clambered in.

"That's for me to know and you to find out. Now, get us in the air while I prepare for our final surprise." Scarecrow said maliciously.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Gordon dashed up to the final floor. Dead men and women littered the police station. Ramirez and her new partner Montoya were waiting for him.

"How bad is it?" he asked, out of breath.

"At least twenty dead. And Scarecrow is escaping in a helicopter. God knows what he wants that for." Ramirez said darkly.

Gordon frowned. Some foul purpose undoubtedly.

"Ready, go, go, go!"

The police launched themselves outside, and the remaining thugs opened fire as the police retaliated. The copter was hovering above the station, with Scarecrow waving cheerily at them.

"Scarecrow! Get down here!" Gordon cried.

The police were all aiming at the copter.

And then Scarecrow pressed a remote.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

The truck they had brought earlier reversed into the garage of the station. After Scarecrow was in his helicopter, it had no further use. So it was destroyed.

The bomb ripped out, obliterating the foundations of the garage and destroying all the cars within. Fire streamed upward, killing more men and destroying parts of the building. The police on the roof all fell to the ground as the blast rocked the station.

"Let's go." Scarecrow said, grinning in glee at the destruction he had wrought.

The helicopter turned and flew away, leaving the police station burning behind them.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

An hour later, the fires were down, and Gordon was watching the station mournfully.

"How bad was it?" he asked grimly.

"Two thirds of our cars are gone, as are a quarter of the SWAT vans. We've only got one helicopter left as well. Thirty seven people were killed here alone, not counting the attack on the school or the safety deposit building. On hell of a mess." Ramirez said sadly.

Gordon closed his eyes in despair. The Joker was the one who this all stemmed from. He had to go.

"Ramirez, get everyone ready. Call me cynical, but the Joker being in charge of a helicopter doesn't sound good."

**Hello folks!**

**Just a quick chapter, and sorry it isnt that good, but I've been away. **

**Scarecrow has decimated the police and Bruce is flirting with the doctor. What will happen next?**

**Also, you may notice a young Tim Drake. I asked a friend in America for information onschools to get his age about right, so I hope I got it right! He may return (wiggles eyebrows suggestively)**

**Well, see you next chapter! Until then, please read and review!**


	4. Stage 4: The Demand

**Disclaimer: I do not own Batman**

Gotham Nights

Scarecrow nodded at the Joker.

"We're good to go." he reported.

"Great. Now, we can turn Gotham into the madhouse it is" the Joker said gleefully.

"Will you deal with Batman?" Scarecrow growled.

"Course." the Joker said with a wide smile.

Scarecrow nodded and got into the helicopter with a group of goons. As it took off, the Joker turned to Harley.

"Come on gal, let's go ruin the Batman's day." he said with suppressed excitement.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Batman frowned as he drove the Batpod through the city. The attack on the Police HQ today had sent everyone indoors. People were frightened, as even law and order were being threatened now. Several young lawyers had been found dead, and the police had taken a beating today, and Gordon and Ramirez were rallying the men to prepare for whatever the Joker was up to. Ramirez, clear of all corruption charges, was marshalling the police forces in the west of the city and Gordon was in the east. And Batman was on the lookout for trouble.

The fear in the city was growing. Everyone was getting more and more frightened, and several people had already run out of Gotham. Even Alfred was a little bit jittery, but that may be because he'd already received two injuries and the Joker had only been out three days.

However, Alfred was perfectly at liberty to be jumpy. Along with the mess Scarecrow had made of the police HQ, the Joker had bombed a freeway, a school and the train station, and undoubtedly had more planned.

As he turned the corner, a massive blast went up from up ahead.

"The power plant." he growled and accelerated towards the place.

He saw the police heading there, but was determined to get there first. He sped up and used the jumping function to clear the wall. As his bike flew through the air, he leapt off the bike, spread his cape and plummeted into a window, to see the Joker, Harley Quinn and several goons cackling manically.

"That was a great explosion Mr J." Harley said admiringly.

"Of course it was Harley. Now, where are the police?" The Joker asked himself.

"Um, boss." a thug in a clown mask said, pointing.

The Joker turned with a grin.

"Well well well, look who's decided to pay us a visit. Hello Batman, my unstoppable friend. Did you like the fireworks?"

"They left a lot to be desired Joker." Batman growled.

"Yeah, some people wont appreciate the genius of it. Now, where are your police friends then? Or did you come alone?" he purred as his thugs started to move in.

Batman looked up to see that the entire west of the city's powergrid was down, which meant it was going to be a nightmare for all concerned.

"Get him boys!" The Joker cried as his thugs advanced, while he and Harley watched gleefully from above.

Batman leapt, avoiding one's swinging crowbar while brining his foot around to knock another man for six.

Ten goons all told, and then the Joker and Harley. As the first man recovered, Batman flipped over another man, and brought his fist crunching down on another's skull. As he span and the man dropped to the ground, he knelt down and tackled one man in the stomach, bowling him into another and with a quick series of punches they had both fallen to the ground. Three down, seven to go.

"Come on Scarecrow, get on with it." Joker growled as Batman crashed another man through a banister and sent him down a level where he lay still.

Batman punched another man straight in the face and he dropped like a stone. Half left. One man shot at Batman, but he somersaulted away from the shot and whipped his leg round. The man fired his gun as he fell, catching another man in the shoulder as he smacked his own head and went still. Three left.

They came at him at once and he leapt to avoid them. He kicked one in the chin and sent him staggering backward before flipping over to tackle another one. With his adrenaline pumping, he couldn't feel either of his wounds. The last ones standing dashed at him and he bowled into him and the man lay still after a whack to the head. The other two came at him and Batman punched one in the face before kicking one in the head. The goons finished, he went after Harley.

The Joker pulled up a massive metal rod as Harley leapt at Batman, a wicked knife appearing in her hands. The blade caught on his suit and broke, as she missed a join. Batman allowed himself a grim smile as she stepped back, looking sheepish. He grabbed her and threw her over the railings, where she thudded to the ground.

"That hurts." she moaned.

The Joker snarled.

"You know, I was meant to be out of here by now. Ah well. I'll just have to vent my fury at you!"

He leapt at Batman and swung the bar.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

The helicopter was headed fro the point they would drop off the gas at as soon as the lights went out, when the first harpoon caught the landing strut of the chopper.

"What the hell?" Scarecrow demanded.

Several men were on the roof, and another harpoon fastened around the strut.

"Boss, we could probably break lose, but we might not be able to land again." the pilot warned.

"Then take us down. I want to see who this bunch are." Scarecrow growled.

The helicopter came to rest on top of the building.

"It's the mob." one goon said warily.

Scarecrow clambered out.

"Oh, it's one of the weirdos. Clear off freak, we want this helicopter for the boss." one burly man said.

Scarecrow grinned maliciously.

"Really? And who is this boss?" he asked politely.

"None of your business freak."

"Hey, Rocko, look at this! There's a crate load of gas in here." the man searching the helicopter yelled.

Scarecrow hissed.

"I would leave that if I were you." Scarecrow warned.

Rocko hit him in the chin with his gun.

Scarecrow growled, and raised his wrist.

"What you doing?" Rocko demanded warily.

A jet of gas erupted into Rocko's face, and he fell to the ground, screaming in terror.

Two thugs then elbowed their captors, deprived them of their weapons and shot them, while Scarecrow shot the man in the helicopter. The other two ran at them, and Scarecrow gassed the two, before kneeling beside the man in the helicopter.

"Your boss has just made a mess of our plans. He'd better expect a visit. Now, you have three choices. One: I leave you here for the police to find. Two: I will you or driver you insane right here and now. Three: You join us. What's it to be?"

"I-I'll join you." the man said weakly.

"Good. Now, who is the new mob boss?"

"His name's Tommy, Tommy Capricelli. He's taken over now and he wants to remind Gotham that we're in charge." e said.

"Good. And where is he?"

"Don't know. We're just the hired help. Eh, were."

Scarecrow grinned under his mask, enjoying the terrified screams of his victims.

"Boss, Gordon's here!"

Scarecrow hissed.

"Into the chopper. We'll get the Joker to abort. And throw him off the building."

"What!?" the man screamed in terror.

Two of Scarecrow's thugs grabbed him and easily threw him over and he fell, screaming to his death.

"Get the crate out." Scarecrow said, a plan forming.

The crate full of fear toxin was heaved onto the roof. They had loads. One crate more or less wouldn't matter much.

"Get in."

The chopper started to take off, and Scarecrow levelled his gun.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Gordon banged the door open to see Scarecrow waving merrily at him. Gordon followed the line his gun was following and swore.

"Get in! Fall back!" he yelled.

Scarecrow fired and the crate blew apart, and a mass of blue gas spread across the rooftops, and several police fell screaming. Gordon, who was immunised swore loudly as Scarecrow's chopper vanished.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

The Joker cackled manically as he swung the pole, knocking the wind out of Batman.

"You know Batman, you really aren't that much different from me. Both of us are freaks according to the wider world. Both of us are fighting for something. You just go about it differently." Joker mused.

"I'm nothing like you." Batman growled as he grabbed the pole and wrenched it from the Joker's hands.

Joker laughed and shouldered Batman, who flipped over the railing, dropping the pole as he did so. The Joker gave an insane cackle and leapt down after him, crashing the pole into his foe's chest. Batman wheezed, but brought his leg up, catching the Joker in the mouth. As the Joker spat blood, Batman struggled up.

"Batman, Batman, Batman, Batman! Why not give up this gig? You and I, we'd make quite the team. Two masked freaks!? We'd bring Gotham to bits in days! What do ya say?" Joker purred.

"Get lost."

Batman then barrelled at Joker, who snarled in rage as he flipped up into the air with the momentum of Batman's tackle. He thudded to the ground, where he started to laugh.

"You know, all of the trouble you're now in, is because you didn't kill me when you had the chance! After the little fight we had in the streets, if you'd finished me then, we wouldn't be here!" he crowed as he delivered a punch to Batman's gut, before following through with a knee in the groin.

Batman staggered backward and the Joker laughed.

"Imagine. If I had died there, your precious Rachel wouldn't be dead, Dent wouldn't have gone off his rocker, the police wouldn't be after you, and I wouldn't have bust Scarecrow out of prison with Harley's help! So, it turns out that the one who wanted to help people only wound up making things worse!" he crowed in victory.

Batman leant against the rail, as the Joker turned to fiddle with his earpiece.

"What!? This had better be good Wurzel. Alright. Change of plans."

The Joker dragged Harley to her feet.

"Well Batsy, this little reunion has been fun. See ya around."

He then slammed the pole into a weakened Batman's head and he collapsed.

"Come on. Something's gone tits up. Let's go."

He pressed a remote.

A massive blast blew out a section of the wall, and they hopped into a car just as the first police car arrived.

"If you look carefully, you'll find a nice present!" he screeched in joy as he zoomed past.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Ramirez left her men to secure the door as she ran into the building. As she'd thought, Batman was lying there, unconscious. She knew full well that it had been a deranged Harvey Dent who had committed the murders Batman had taken the blame for. As such, she and Gordon were the only two police officers who knew Batman was innocent.

"Alright Bats-for-brains, you need to get up. If the others see you, they'll shoot on sight." she hissed as she prodded at him.

His eyes fluttered open.

"Get out of here." she ordered.

He groaned as he got to his feet.

"Where's the Joker and Harley?" he asked.

"They've run for it. Now, get out of here, before the rest of my squad comes in and shoot you! We need you! Move!" she urged.

"Thank you Anna."

He was gone into the dark shadows and she breathed a sigh of relief. Although she didn't condone his antics, she knew he was the one who had beaten Scarecrow, the Joker and Two-Face, so that made him mostly alright in her book. She nodded at him as he vanished and as her men came through the door, looking for the Joker's goons.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"The new mob boss wants the helicopter for some reason. He brought us down and we dealt with him. This guy seems to think he can mess with our plans. Now we're behind schedule." Scarecrow muttered bitterly.

The Joker pondered this.

"Hmm. We'll wait for a bit. If he makes another move, we deal with him. Get the chopper fixed. We're going to need it."

He then left the room, and his goons hurried to do his bidding. He was about to step up his campaign.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Bruce awoke with his head spinning.

"Don't worry, we're on the way to the hospital. You could barely walk when you tottered in last night." Alfred said wryly.

"The Joker hit me in the head." Bruce moaned, clutching it in pain.

"Yes. The blood on your cover was a slight indication. Oh, whatever the attack on the power plant was for, it failed. Scarecrow returned to base without doing anything. So, the only problem is the quarter of the city that's out of power." Alfred reported.

Bruce thanked him, not caring that he was going to the hospital again. His head was killing him.

They were seen to ten minutes later, once again by Doctor Isley.

"Mr Wayne. Once again you see fit to wound yourself in order to grace me with your presence." she purred as she entered.

"Well, I thought a nice concussion would save you having to get your sewing kit out." Bruce said, clutching his head.

"Thank you, but you needn't injure yourself just to let me escape horny teenagers worried about STIs. " she said kindly and took a look at him.

"How did he do this?" she asked in disapproval as she surveyed the hairline fracture.

Alfred rolled his eyes.

"Silly bugger. His slipper came off on the stair and he fell down them. I did warn him."

"Men. You cant do a lot with them, especially at his age." she said, clicking her tongue.

"I am still here. And getting more coherent too." he pouted.

"Now now Mr Wayne, no Vanessa strops here please. Or my favourite patient may be demoted." she teased as she fixed up his wound.

"Will he be alright?" Alfred asked in concern.

"Oh yes. I'd recommend keeping off the booze for a day or two, but aside from that and a bit of babbling he should be fine."

"I wont be able to tell the difference." Alfred said, winking at him.

"I can find another butler you know." Bruce threatened as he pulled on his jacket.

"Ah, but he would care for you as much as Alfred does?" Pam asked as she filled out his medical slip with a sigh.

"Well thank you again Doctor Isley. I'm putting all your skills to test here. Patience most of all." Bruce said as Alfred went to get the car.

She grinned at him.

"Oh don't worry, it's my worst skill according to my mother. She says I should be less impatient."

Bruce grinned at her.

"Well I hope to see you again." he said, shaking her hand.

"And I hope to see you. But don't take this the wrong way Mr Wayne, but I'd rather it was not in a bed in the hospital." she said with a wink.

"Hmm. I have been here a lot haven't I?" he asked sheepishly.

"Yes, just a tad. The medical profession will be penniless by the time you're finished."

He kissed her hand on an impulse and headed for the car, waving goodbye as he did so.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Pamela was busily stirring her tea when Sally appeared behind her.

"So, what was it this time?"

Pam jumped, sloshing tea over the side of the cup.

"Sally." she complained, cleaning up the mess as Sally helped herself to the tea she had just made.

Pam opened her mouth to protest, but overlooked it and proceeded to make another cup.

"If you must know, it was a small concussion. Silly bugger fell down the stairs." she said in amused exasperation.

Sally smiled.

"You _so_ like him."

Pam rolled her eyes as she raided the biscuit tin. Nobody had deigned to replenish the custard creams, but there jaffa cakes to keep her busy.

"No I don't."

"Then why were so eager to see him when it was announced that he was in again?" Sally wheedled.

"It gave me a welcome reprieve from Mr Kirkston doing his exercises."

"If you say so hon. Admit it, you like him!"

"Dream on Sally."

Sally was then beeped away. Throwing her one last knowing look, she vanished.

"Dream on." Pam said, drinking her tea.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"Now, you will be sensible when you go out tonight?" Alfred pressed.

"Yes Alfred. And it's not my fault. The Joker cheats." Bruce whined.

Alfred shook his head darkly, and Bruce smiled to himself. This time it would be different.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

The three of them were waiting in a car, across the bank in a small alley waiting to make their move when the most people were inside.

"Ready?" Joker asked, grabbing the wheel.

"Um, Joker, look." Scarecrow said pointing.

Six heavily armed men clambered out of a van and dashed into the bank, entering with their guns blazing.

"Mr J, why are they robbing our target?" Harley asked in confusion.

"It's the Mob." Scarecrow said, adjusting his mask.

The Joker licked his lips.

"Seems to me that this guy is determined to foil all we're doing. Come on. We need to find a guy."

"And then what?"

"Then we pay this damn mob boss a little visit."

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"Looks like he's one of the ones we're looking for puddin. Definitely been seen in the more corrupt areas of town." Harley said, indicating a man who had just entered a tack looking café.

The Joker grinned.

"Come on then."

The three of them walked across the street, guns in hand.

"Harl, seeing as we're here, rob em." the Joker said.

"Rightho lover."

He kicked the door down and the chatter within suddenly turned to frightened silence.

"Anyone see a copper just come in here? Need to talk to him. It's a little thing." the Joker said as he surveyed the café's array of clientele.

Harley was busy robbing people while Scarecrow was guarding the door.

"Where's the copper? I just want a quick wee chat with him that's all."

The overweight man got to his feet.

"I'm him."

The Joker walked up to him.

"Now. This is nothing against you per se. See, the new Mob boss has really gotten on my nerves. He upset two of my plans, and when I take the time to actually make a plan, I expect to be able to carry them out. Now, you see, I'm looking for wherever it is the new mob boss has a hidey-hole, so I can pop in and pay a visit."

"What, and lose the money I get from him to keep quiet?"

It happened very fast. The Joker was right there, his flick knife in the policeman's mouth.

"You want to know how I got these scars? You see, this enforcer for a loan shark comes looking for a friend of mine in a pub, quite like this setting here. He asked where the friend was. I naturally refused to tell him. So, he got a knife, just like this here, maybe a bit bigger and inserts it in my mouth. He threatens to cut if I don't talk. I still keep quiet, and he rips my mouth up and then leaves in the huff. Now, I can do the same thing to you. I'd rather not as I just sharpened me knife. So, if you tell me what I want to know I'll leave you alone."

The man went pale, but gulped.

"Did all that really happen?"

The Joker rolled his eyes.

"Does it matter? Now, are you going to spill?"

"An old house, out near the Palisades. Barnes Street, right at the end."

"Thank you."

He then sliced his knife down and slit the man's throat.

"Well, I never scarred your mouth." he said as the man gave him one last shocked look before dropping to the ground.

"Now, Harley has relieved you of your items. And you all heard where we're going. We cant really take the chance that you'll tell the bums in blue where we're going."

He turned and left the building, Scarecrow and Harley in tow. As he did so, he pulled a pin out of a grenade and threw it in.

"Five, four, three, two, one…" he muttered.

A massive blast emitted from behind them and fire covered the street as they drove off.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

They drove up to the house. They had decided to wait for darkness before they acted so as to avoid any strange looks and let the mania of the bombing go down.

"Right, they cant see a thing." Harley said, returning with the cable that powered the surveillance system.

The Joker led them up the garden path and rung the doorbell. A small man answered it and the Joker blew a hole in his chest before they strolled leisurely in. Two thugs ran out of a room wielding snooker cues and Scarecrow blasted them with fear toxin and they fell screaming.

"Where's the boss?" the Joker demanded.

"Here."

The man stepped into the room, smoothing out his suit.

"Ah. Here's the troublemaker. You see, you've caused me a lot of problems. First you ruin the plan to gas Gotham and then you rob a bank I wanted to blow up." the Joker growled.

Capricelli inclined his head.

"I apologise. However, I am here to rebuild the Mob's influence in Gotham. You three are making a mess of that plan. Its only fair that I get a little pay back."

The Joker laughed as Capricelli stared him down.

"Hmm. You have spirit I'll give you that. Tell you what, it seems to me that both of use have a common enemy in the Batman. So, if you stay out of our way well stay out of yours. Either that or I blow your head off. Deal?"

"Deal."

"See what happens when we're all reasonable."

The Joker beckoned to the other two and turned to leave just before a gas canister blew through the door.

"Damn it! The cops!" Capricelli yelled in shock.

"Go! We'll hold them!" the Joker said with relish.

Two squads of policemen were outside.

"You know, you police men are all so alike. You're all so moronic, servants to the established order of things. And that's where you all go wrong. If you just learned to loosen up and have a bit of fun, this city wouldn't collapse every time I come along!" he crowed.

He leapt out and shot down two men, as Harley cartwheeled out of the house and punched two men in the face before killing another. Scarecrow made a run for it, narrowly missing the bullets Gordon and Ramirez were pouring gunfire at them. One particularly brave man dashed at the Joker. The Joker grinned and shot out his kneecap.

"See, that's what I mean. Let yourself go. Well, you still got shot, but what can you do?"

He grabbed the man off the ground and crouched down as Harley poured covering fire at the police, who were slowly advancing. Scarecrow then drove up in front of them and the Joker clambered in, dragging the man in behind him as Harley shot into the car, still firing.

"Step on it!" Harley screeched as she threw a grenade.

"Down!" Ramirez yelled as the bomb went off.

In the smoke, they escaped. They saw Capricelli's car up ahead.

"You sure you want to work with them?" Scarecrow queried.

"No. But they're getting on my nerves a bit, so we'd better get them on side for the moment."

"Mr J!"

The Joker turned to see Gordon in pursuit, along with two other police cars. The policeman they had abducted gave a cry of pain as Scarecrow crashed the car through the fence at the side of the road and they trundled down a slope.

"Where to?" he asked.

"The radio station." The Joker said calmly, still watching for the police cars that were gaining.

"What do we do?" Harley whined.

"Get the box out Harl." the Joker said rubbing his hands in glee.

"Ooh!" Harley cooed in excitement and gave a long thin box to him.

"Keep us driving straight Wurzel." the Joker barked as he stuck his head through the roof.

"What are you going to do?" Scarecrow asked as he swerved to avoid a horse.

"Blow em up!"

Scarecrow looked up and went pale to see that the maniac was wielding a bazooka.

"Cover your ears boys and girls!" he called and fired.

Gordon went pale, and his car swerved out of harm's way, screeching to a halt in a ditch. The next car in line also managed to escape, crashing into the wall but otherwise unscathed. The other car however was blown sky-high as the car thundered out of the field and slammed back onto the innercity freeway. Dozens of vehicles were passing on either side.

"Woohoo!" the Joker exclaimed in delight as he fired a rocket at an approaching truck.

The truck went into the air, flames billowing before the trailer slammed to the ground and slid across the motorway, causing several crashes as the cab blew apart, igniting two more cars which soon followed suit.

"Um, Joker, more police." Scarecrow growled, ignoring the howls of the policeman.

Three more police cars were waiting at the turn off before the overpass. He grinned as two more came from the other side, along with several police vans.

"Step on it! Faster!" he shouted.

Scarecrow put his foot down and sped under the bridge, the police convoy in hot pursuit.

"Now, watch the fireworks!"

The Joker kept his finger on the trigger and a dozen rockets blasted into the overpass. With a great wrenching sound, the bridge collapsed to the ground, crushing the police convoy as their own car shot out unscathed.

"Oh that was brilliant! I must do that more often!" he said in ecstasy.

They reached the radio station without any more fuss. The sun was beginning to set as they arrived.

"Call the chopper and have it ready to pick us up." the Joker ordered as he dragged the policeman out the car, who was still whimpering.

The three of them entered the station with Scarecrow blasting the clerk with fear gas as they clambered up the stairs to the recording suite. They shot the woman who was hosting a show, and the Joker sat down, while Harley linked the man to the radio too.

"Sorry to interrupt Gotham. We bring you this interruption from Joker Anarchic Services Limited. Today, we have a special guest. Can you tell them your name son?" the Joker asked condescendingly.

"Roger Burton."

"Welcome to the Joker Show Roger! Now, can you tell me why you were shooting t me and my friends?" he asked.

"Because hes nuts eh Mr J!?" Harley squealed excitedly from the producing station next door.

"That's right Harley! If you were a caller I'd give you a prize! Now, is that why you shot at us?" he asked.

"No. I did it because you're a madman!"

The Joker gasped theatrically.

"Not very nice eh listeners!? Why do you think I'm a madman? Because I go around in face paint?"

"No, because you're a murderer."

The Joker laughed manically.

"You want the murders to stop?" the Joker asked.

"Yes."

"Very well. Listen carefully Gotham. I am not going to stop murdering just because you ask nicely. I am going to stop when the Batman comes and surrenders to me."

Harley and Scarecrow gave him a thumbs up. He then turned to the man.

"And to show you I mean business, I'm going to kill this man."

The Joker took out his knife.

"You know what I believe Gotham? Whatever doesn't kill you, simply makes you stranger. And to that, I pose the immortal question. Why so serious?"

He then cut the man's leg right down to the artery.

"AAH!"

"Why so serious?" the Joker demanded, cutting his other leg and allowing more blood to gush onto the floor.

"Please, God, stop!" the man yelled in terror and pain.

"Why so serious?" the Joker asked again this time cutting the man's left wrist.

"OH GOD! HELP!" the man wailed.

"Why so serious?" he asked in a quiet voice cutting the mans other wrist and grinning as more blood gushed from the man.

"HELP! BATMAN, JUST SURRENDER!"

The Joker then gave a malicious grin and pressed his knife to the man's throat.

"Why so serious?" he asked casually, and slit the man's throat.

The Joker laughed manically as the man sagged in the chair and blood poured everywhere.

"You heard Gotham! Surrender the Batman, or it keeps happening!"

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Alfred heard the entire thing as he pottered away in the kitchen. The Joker's voice sent a chill through him. And if people listened to the Joker, Bruce's life was about to become very difficult…

He shuddered in fear.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Pamela hugged her cat, Flora, as she heard the Joker speak over the radio. Her little black cat purred contentedly as she shook. She really wanted someone to hold her.

For the first time in ages, she was truly frightened.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Gordon and Ramirez had had to take the long way around the city to avoid the carnage on the freeway and were now hearing the chilling demand the Joker had made.

"Step on it." Gordon said.

"We don't need to." she said calmly, though her knuckles were white.

"How not?"

She pointed as Batman drove past them.

"Oh."

"Oops."

"What now?"

She pointed and they could see the stolen police helicopter head to the radio tower.

"Bugger. Step on it."

"Agreed."

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Batman left the Batpod and hurtled up the stairs. He came to the recording studio where the Joker had been, and shook his head sadly at the dead policeman. Things had just gotten a lot worse. He then dashed up the rest of the stairs to the roof where the Joker, Scarecrow and Harley were waiting.

"Joker." he hissed.

They turned, and the Joker cackled in delight.

"Did you hear all that Batman? You here to end it all?"

"No, I'm here to finish you."

He leapt at the three of them, his cloak fanning out as he launched himself at them. The Joker and Harley fell back as Scarecrow raised his wrist.

"Take this." Scarecrow hissed.

Batman was too fast for him, grabbing the man's wrist and flipping him over, slamming him to the ground as he ripped off his fear canister. He then turned to deliver a kick right into Harley's jaw. She shrieked and stumbled, trying to hold the Joke for support but he was further back, taking aim with his gun. Batman seized Harley by the shoulder and span her into a recovering Scarecrow, before punching the two of them in the face, allowing them to drop like stones.

The Joker then tackled him and he staggered, before recovering and slamming his wrist spikes into the Joker's arm. The Joker laughed at the pain and whacked Batman in the chin with his gun.

"Come on Batman, surrender! You know you want to stop me!"

"Not on your terms. On everyone's elses!"

He crashed his foot into the Joker's chest, before punching the maniac right in the face. The Joker fell to the ground and Batman dug his knee into his chest.

"It's over Joker. You're finished." Batman growled.

"Really Batman? Our little contest of wills will never be over. You are the unmoveable object, and I'm the unstoppable force. You wont change your philosophy, and I wont adapt to your stubbornness. It will never be finished, as our little battles are just too much _fun_!"

Batman sneered at him.

"And you want to know another unstoppable force?" the Joker asked with a delighted smile.

"What?"

"Her."

Harley's knife then lanced into Batman's leg, and he gave a shriek of pain and toppled off the Joker.

"Thanks for the dance Batman! Smell you later!" he called cheerily as he and Harley got a weak Scarecrow into the helicopter.

Batman growled, grimacing in pain as he got to his feet. The helicopter flew skyward, and was gone.

"Damn it."

"Batman?"

Gordon and Ramirez appeared, looking concerned.

"I nearly had him. If I'd just hit Harley harder…"

"Don't beat yourself up Batman." Ramirez said consolingly as she looked at his cut.

"What's the damage?" Batman asked, turning to Gordon.

"A load of dead on the freeway. And the Joker's little radio broadcast is going to make your job even harder." Gordon said wearily.

"You'll be fine. But you should get that seen to." Ramirez said.

"Thanks."

"Go. Others are coming."

Batman gave tem a brief nod, then leapt off the building, bound for the Batpod.

"What happens now?"

"People start to go nuts, wanting him to surrender to the Joker and stop all this. And the death of that poor man will just make them angrier." Gordon moaned sadly.

Ramirez pursed her lips.

"What do we do?"

"Prepare for Gotham to do what the Joker wants it to do: fall into chaos."

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Lucius was still at work when he'd heard the death of poor Roger Burton. The fear in the man's voice would take everyone who had heard it a very long time to forget. He hoped that it wouldn't make Bruce's job any harder than it already was, as people were already angry enough with the Batman.

"Lucius." a voice whispered from the shadows.

"Batman." Lucius turned to face him.

"You heard?"

"Hard not to. You mustn't let that get to you. You have to keep fighting." Lucius urged.

"I know. And I need something for that."

Lucius frowned as Batman limped towards the window.

"Are you injured?"

"Harley Quinn got me again when I was pinning the Joker. I'll be fine."

Lucius narrowed his eyes in disbelief, but pressed on.

"What do you need?"

"The Joker has a helicopter. I need something that flies too. A plane or a helicopter or something."

Lucius considered.

"Well for it to fit into the Batcave, it would need to be a vertical take off craft. If memory serves there was a project a few years ago called the Avatar Plane. I'll look into that."

"Thank you Lucius."

And with that, he was gone.

Lucius frowned in concern for the man. He believed in what the lad was doing, but the Joker…he was something else. He hoped he would be alright. Reluctantly sitting back down, eh called Morgana and told her he'd be a little late.

Then, he got to work.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

The next day dawned dull and dark, like the public mood. People had been terrified by the Joker's vicious announcement and the very public death of Roger Burton. As the Joker had wanted, people were going nuts in the streets, with massive protests demanding that the Batman surrender to the Joker. These of course were prime targets for the attack and at least three were hit, one by a fear gas attack and the other two with bombs. Terror gripped everyone in Gotham, and Alfred drove them to the hospital in silence, as the radio station was closed for the day.

He was once again seen by Doctor Isley, who looked a little pale.

"Are you alright?" Bruce asked as she stitched up his leg.

"Just a little shaken that's all. I was in my garden last night when the Joker made his demand, I was listening to the radio. It doesn't do much for your sleep requirement." she shuddered as she finished.

"It'll be alright. You'll see." Bruce soothed.

"I hope so Mr Wayne. Now, I thought we decided that we weren't going to be seeing you in here to get patched up again?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Tell that to Alfred. It's not my fault he left a roll of cheese wire lying around."

She smiled slightly.

"You're going to bankrupt the health service you know." she said with a small smile, and Bruce grinned back.

"Well, they can sue me." he said cheekily.

"Hmm. By the time you've stopped coming in and having to be rebuilt every time, we wont have any money to sue you with." she retorted with a smile.

He sniggered.

"So am I good to go?" he asked.

"Yes, feel free. Now, I do really appreciate your visits, but you don't need to go to drastic measures when you want to come to hospital to consult me on the Joker's latest antics. Well, not as a patient anyway." she said lightly.

Bruce paled for a second, afraid he'd been rumbled, but she went on.

"Or you could just pick up the phone." she said as she signed his slip for the fourth time.

"I'll remember that. On that topic, would you…"

She raised an eyebrow at him, and he mumbled indistinctly, embarrassed.

"Yes?" she asked, concern coming onto her beautiful face.

"Would you, like to go out some time?" he asked in a rush.

She appraised him for a second, before flashing him a wide, glorious smile.

"I'd love to."

"Well, good. I'll call you." he said, handing her his hard as she handed him hers.

"Very well. Goodbye Mr Wayne." she said happily, and trotted off.

"Goodbye Pamela." Bruce said, and bounced off in the opposite direction.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Pamela smiled to herself as she walked down the corridor. A date with Bruce Wayne. She was quite looking forward to it.

Then, another thought struck her. Sally was going to be insufferable.

She then saw her friend's eager face waiting for her in the staff room.

"Let the torment begin." she said with a sigh, and entered the proverbial gates of hell.

**Well, the Joker's upped his game now, and things just got a lot nastier.**

**On the plus side, Batman nearly got them this time. And he has a date with Doctor Isley. Good for him.**

**I hope you're liking this, as I'm enjoying writing it. Please read and review!**


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